Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children and State Child Welfare Systems

Abstract

In several states, commercial sexual exploitation of children (CSEC) is now a reportable child abuse offense. Illinois has taken the lead in tackling the issue and the Illinois experience illuminates valuable lessons. This article delineates the protection, practice, and policy implications that evolve when CSEC falls under a state child welfare system. The specific aims are to (a) discuss CSEC, its victims, risks, harms, and challenges inherent in providing effective care; (b) use Illinois as an exemplar to explicate the consequences and implementation challenges of establishing a state reporting system that frames CSEC as a child welfare issue; (c) recommend strategies for developing effective state reporting models, and (d) demonstrate how nurses are well poised to advocate for victims of human trafficking on both state and national levels. Recommendations for improving the identification of CSEC victims and overcoming challenges to state implementation are offered.

Mandatory Reporting of Human Trafficking: Potential Benefits and Risks of Harm

“…In the US, for example, at-risk youth include those who have been sexually abused; youth who lack stable housing; sexual and gender minority youth; youth who have used or abused drugs and/or alcohol; and youth who have experienced homelessness, foster care placement, or juvenile justice involvement [1]. Trafficked children, adolescents, and adults experience adverse social, legal, and health consequences [1][2][3][4][9][10][11][12][13][14][15]. Health consequences are both physical-sexual and reproductive health problems, injuries from physical abuse, and chronic medical conditions-and mental-posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety disorders, depression, substance use, suicidal ideation and attempts, and homicide risk [14].…”

“…Moreover, both studies identified Illinois as a state whose updated child abuse reporting law requires reporting of both sex and labor trafficking to the state child welfare agency, and a recent report analyzing this law's implications for child protection policy and practice found that the state's child welfare agency was encountering significant obstacles in implementing the updated reporting law [12]. Implementation challenges included the need to build capacity to identify, track, and respond to trafficked children; limitations in the scope of the state's child abuse reporting law to cover only abuse by guardians and caretakers; and conflicting agency policies and priorities [12].…”

“…Implementation challenges included the need to build capacity to identify, track, and respond to trafficked children; limitations in the scope of the state's child abuse reporting law to cover only abuse by guardians and caretakers; and conflicting agency policies and priorities [12]. All three of these studies identified risks as well as benefits of incorporating human trafficking into state child abuse reporting laws [10][11][12].…”

“…Laws must be drafted to include definitions of both sex and labor trafficking that cast the net wide enough to reach trafficked persons, while at the same time including provisions to ensure that the victims and survivors are connected to services that can meet their needs [10,11]. Mandated reporters and the child welfare and law enforcement officials who receive and investigate the reports must be appropriately trained to identify trafficked persons and to provide, refer, or connect trafficking victims and survivors to specialized services [9][10][11][12]. Identified victims and survivors must have access to specialized trauma-informed care to address their physical and psychological health needs and be aware that those services are available to them [2][3][4][13][14][15].…”

“…Mandatory reporting laws generally are designed to identify and connect victims to protective services and to bring perpetrators to the attention of authorities [10]. Although requiring health care professionals to report human trafficking is intended to help trafficking victims, it may also create ethical dilemmas because mandatory reporting entails risks as well as benefits [1,[10][11][12]. This article explores these risks and benefits by examining the evolution and implications of the growing trend to include human trafficking in child abuse reporting laws.…”